Electrical connectors – With coupling movement-actuating means or retaining means in... – Retaining means
Reexamination Certificate
2001-02-26
2002-12-17
Paumen, Gary (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
With coupling movement-actuating means or retaining means in...
Retaining means
C439S160000, C439S489000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06494732
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a connector fitting structure in which a pair of male and female connectors are fittingly connected together.
The present application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-49746, which is incorporated herein by reference.
2. Description of the Related Art
Usually, many electronic equipments are mounted on a vehicle such as an automobile, and various cables for supplying electric power to these equipments and for controlling these equipments, as well as male and female connectors for connecting these cables, have been extensively used. Such male and female connectors have durability and a waterproof function so as to be suitably used in a severe environment, in which vibrations and submergence are encountered, and besides the male and female connectors are so constructed that a wire harness or the like can be easily attached to and detached from the connectors during an assembling process and at the time of maintenance.
One example of conventional connector fitting structures will be described with reference to
FIGS. 8
to
11
. As shown in
FIG. 8
, a male connector (one connector)
60
of the connector fitting structure
51
includes an inner housing
62
, which has terminal receiving chambers for respectively receiving a predetermined number of socket contacts, and is open to the front side thereof, and an outer housing
61
covering the outer periphery of the inner housing
62
.
The outer housing
61
includes a slider receiving portion
63
for receiving a slider
70
, and guide grooves
65
for respectively guiding opposite side portions of the slider
70
are formed respectively at opposite side portions of the slider receiving portion
63
, that is, in inner surfaces of opposite side walls of the outer housing
61
. Within the slider receiving portion
63
, lock arms
66
, each having a free end (front end in a connector fitting direction), are formed integrally on the inner housing
62
.
A housing lock
68
for retaining engagement with an engagement projection
93
on a female connector (the other connector)
90
is formed on an upper surface of each lock arm
66
at the distal end thereof. An insertion space
66
a
for allowing the insertion of a pressing rib
92
on the female connector
90
is formed between the distal end portions of the lock arms
66
. A pressing portion
69
, which is pressed when canceling the fitting connection, is formed on central portions of the lock arms
66
.
A pair of retaining arms
67
for temporarily preventing the rearward movement of the slider
70
are provided respectively in opposite side spaces
63
a
of the slider receiving portion
63
disposed at a rear portion of the housing in the connector fitting direction.
The slider
70
comprises a first slide member
71
, a second slide member
76
engaged with a rear portion of the first slide member
71
, and compression springs
83
held in the second slide member
76
.
The first slide member
71
includes a pair of rearwardly-extending stopper arm portions
73
and
73
, which are engaged respectively with front ends of the compression springs
83
, and an interconnecting portion
74
interconnecting these arm portions. An abutment portion
75
, against which the pressing rib
92
on the female connector
90
, can abut, is formed at the interconnecting portion
74
. A pair of slide grooves
72
and
72
for allowing the movement of engagement arm portions
78
of the second slide member
76
are formed in opposite ends of the interconnecting portion
74
, respectively.
The second slide member
76
has forwardly-extending retaining portions
77
. The retaining portions
77
can be engaged respectively with the housing locks
68
, formed respectively at the distal ends of the lock arms
66
, during a connector fitting operation. A passage notch
77
a
for allowing the passage of the pressing rib
92
of the female connector
90
is formed between front ends of the retaining portions
77
. An operating portion
79
, which is pressed when canceling the fitting connection, is formed at an upper portion of the second slide member
76
at a widthwise-central portion thereof, and this operating portion
79
covers the pressing portion
69
of the lock arms
66
in overlying relation thereto.
For assembling the slider
70
, the compression springs
83
are inserted respectively into spring receiving chambers
81
in the second slide member
76
, and then the stopper arm portions
73
of the first slide member
71
are inserted into the spring receiving chambers
81
, respectively. The engagement arm portions
78
are engaged respectively with retaining surfaces
73
a
of the stopper arm portions
73
, thereby combining the first and second slide members
71
and
76
together into a unitary form. The slider
70
, thus assembled into a unitary form, is inserted into the male connector
60
from the front side thereof, and is pushed until the rear end of the second slide member
76
is brought into retaining engagement with retaining projections
67
a
of the retaining arms
67
.
The female connector
90
has a housing insertion port
94
open to the front side thereof. The pressing rib
92
for abutment against the abutment portion
75
of the first slide member
71
is formed upright on a housing
91
. The pair of engagement projections
93
for respectively elastically deforming the lock arms
66
are formed respectively on both side surfaces of the pressing rib
92
at the front end thereof.
Next, the operation for fitting the male and female connectors
60
and
90
together will be described.
When the fitting operation is started as shown in
FIG. 9
, the pressing rib
92
of the female connector
90
passes through the passage notch
77
a
(see FIG.
8
), and the front end of the pressing rib
92
abuts against the abutment portion
75
of the first slide member
71
.
When the fitting operation further proceeds, the pressing rib
92
of the female connector
90
, while pressing the first slide member
71
, enters the insertion space
66
a
(see
FIG. 8
) between the lock arms
66
of the male connector
60
. At this time, the engagement projections
93
, formed at the front end of the pressing rib
92
, are brought into sliding contact with slanting surfaces of the housing locks
68
, formed respectively at the distal ends of the lock arms
66
, respectively, so that the distal end portions of the lock arms
66
are displaced toward the housing
91
of the female connector
90
. As a result, the distal ends of the housing locks
68
are engaged respectively with the retaining portions
77
of the second slide member
76
, thereby preventing the sliding movement of the second slide member
76
, as shown in FIG.
10
.
When the fitting operation further proceeds, the first slide member
71
is pushed by the pressing rib
92
, and therefore is moved rearward. At this time, the engagement arm portions
78
of the second slide member
76
are introduced respectively into the slide grooves
72
(see
FIG. 8
) in the first slide member
71
. Thus, the first slide member
71
is moved while the second slide member
76
is stopped, and therefore the compression springs
83
in the second slide member
76
are compressed, and a restoring force for resiliently restoring the compression spring
83
into its original condition is produced in each compression spring
83
.
If the fitting operation is stopped in a half-fitted condition in which the housing locks
68
of the male connector
60
are not completely engaged respectively with the engagement projections
93
of the female connector
90
, the first slide member
71
is pushed back in a disengaging direction (opposite to the connector fitting direction) by the restoring force of the compression springs
83
. Therefore, the half-fitted condition can be easily detected.
Then, when the fitting operation further proceeds against the bias of the compression springs
83
, the engagement projections
93
of the female connector
90
slide respectively past t
Kashiyama Motohisa
Yamawaki Takanori
Harvey James R.
Paumen Gary
Sughrue & Mion, PLLC
Yazaki -Corporation
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